Mortgage company unreasonable about homeowners insurance requirements.?
I own a condo, and I asked my mortgage company how much condo insurance I am required to hold as a provision of my mortgage.
They stated that I must have enough to pay off the mortgage balance. This is COMPLETELY unreasonable. The condo association has insurance to rebuild the exterior (which was documented at loan closing), and a great deal of the condo value is the land. It would only take about 1/3 of the mortgage balance to fully rebuild the parts of the condo I am responsible for. If I carried that much insurance, the insurance company would never pay it anyway, even in a total loss.
Do I have any recourse for negotiating with my mortgage lender to allow me to carry less insurance?
–>Adam
Many Mortgage companies try this. I have found that when you actually sit down and go over a scenario with them, they sometimes wise up. Tell them that other companies take into acount the coverage of the master policy PLUS the land value. (if the building burns down, the land is still worth the same amount…) Your policy should only cover the replacement cost of the "drywall in" plus and additions or alterations you make.
July 17th, 2010 at 10:22 am
Nope. They give you the money for your mortgage so they hold the strings and have the power to mandate just about anything they want. They take a lot of risk when they hand over hundreds of thousands of dollars for you to buy a house – so they have the right to mandate that coverage. We ALL pay it. Just shop around for different companies to see if you can get a better rate. If you have had any claims you are not going to get good rates and or might get denied coverage by many firms. Good luck.
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July 17th, 2010 at 10:50 am
I’m no expert on insurance and maybe someone will come along and give a good answer.
However, I would suggest contacting your local insurance commissioners office and see if they have any information that would be helpful.
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July 17th, 2010 at 11:15 am
You have done a closing, which means you have also gotten a "Contract" from the mortgage company. Look at the contract and if it specifically states that you must carry insurance in the amount of the mortgage, then you have no recourse unfortunately. However, the mortgage company wants to make sure that their interests are covered. So if you could show what the Condo Associations’s policy covers, that might be enough. Generally you are not required to carry insurance covering the cost of the land, but it would vary depending on the Mortgage Company.
The only legal recourse you’re going to have is the contract you signed at closing. Beyond that, I would recommend getting a copy of the Condo Associations policy with the wording showing what their policy covers and then get a copy of your policy showing that it covers the rest. That might work.
I hope this helps!
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10+ years in insurance
July 17th, 2010 at 11:33 am
It’s not a matter of paying enough to rebuild, it’s about paying enough to pay off your mortgage.
I am in the same boat, I owe less than 75% of what my home is worth but I am stuck with PMI for the first 5-years of my FHA mortgage.
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Finance Manager for over 7-years.
July 17th, 2010 at 12:11 pm
Find a different mortgage company. You might not agree with them, but it’s highly likely (if they are a CURRENT mortgagee) that you’ve already agreed IN WRITING to it. So pull your original sales papers.
Keep in mind, sometimes association policies LAPSE. Sometimes things happen that AREN’T COVERED. The association policy doesn’t COVER land, for sure. Also, associations, especially LARGER associations, carry LARGE deductibles – like sometimes $100,000 or more. If there was a problem with JUST your unit, and either the coverage lapsed, or it was under your deductible, the mortgage company wants the damages covered.
You don’t have much recourse, besides asking your agent to talk some sense into them. Or, of course, you could refi to another mortgagee that will accept the master policy instead of your unit owners policy.
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agent, 21+ years
July 17th, 2010 at 12:38 pm
If you can’t find a better offer, it may be possible in 2 or 3 year’s for example, to seek a more favourable insurance etc.
Maybe even refuse to continue paying etc. ??
( if you think the mortage provider, won’t immediately send in the bailiffs ) just an idea .
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http://www.america-select.com
July 17th, 2010 at 1:10 pm
Many Mortgage companies try this. I have found that when you actually sit down and go over a scenario with them, they sometimes wise up. Tell them that other companies take into acount the coverage of the master policy PLUS the land value. (if the building burns down, the land is still worth the same amount…) Your policy should only cover the replacement cost of the "drywall in" plus and additions or alterations you make.
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2 years in mtg bus. 5 in insurance. GA, FL, and SC Lic.
912-756-5802
July 17th, 2010 at 1:34 pm
No doubt the easiest way to get insurance quotes is on the web.
Why would you waste your time on the phone calling around?
the last time i needed quotes on insurance i used one of these comparison sites and it was great.
this is the site i used and it was quick like less than 5 mins.
The last thing I want to do is listen to elevator music while waiting for a salesman.
Anyway I got good quotes and ended up saving money so I was happy.
So shop around and compare quotes which is easy on the net.
Good starting point is at this site.
http://www.safelinked.info/go.php?link=insurance
Good luck.
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